Monday, May 19, 2014

A meeting was held today in the DGHRD office at Rajendra Place, New Delhi, which was attended by the Committee appointed by the CBEC (to study issues concerning proposed All India Seniority for Inspectors of Central Excise and their Customs counterparts) and office bearers of Associations representing Gr B Executives of both Excise and Customs sides. DG - HRD chaired the meeting. Chief Commisioner, Delhi Customs, ADG HRM and several other senior officials of the CBEC and DGHRD were present in the meeting.

AICEIA reiterated our earlier submissions made under letter dated 12. 05.2014 and also the fresh points raised in our letter (text reproduced hereunder) handed over during the course of today's meeting.

Please
refer to the DGHRD, CBEC OMs on the captioned subject issued under F. No.
8/B/36/HRD(HRM)/ 2014 Part- I dated 07.05.2014 and 09.05.2014, and this
Association’s letter of even no. 2 dated 12.05.2014 in response to the same,
further to which the following submissions
are made :

1.Apart from the Judgment of the Hon’ble Supreme Court in the Radheshyam Singh case,
the provisions laid down by DoP&T as regards Seniority too mandate all
India Seniority for all Inspectors who have been recruited by an All India
Merit List:-

“2.1. SENIORITY OF DIRECT RECRUITS

The relative seniority of all
direct recruits is determined by the order of merit in which they are selected
for such appointment on the recommendations of the U.P.S.C. or other selecting
authority, persons appointed as a result of an earlier selection being senior
to those appointed as a result of subsequent selection. (O.M. No.
20011/5/90-Estt (D) Dated 4.11.1992)”

2.Para 2.3 (page 3) of the Board Brief (F.No. 8/B/36/HRD(HRM)/2014) does not represent wholly true facts inasmuch
as the assertion that “Even though the selections are made on the
basis of all India Merit List, allocation of selected candidates is done on the
basis of merit-cum-preference basis to various zonal /Commissionerate based
cadres. Allocation of the grade, viz. Inspector CE, Preventive Officer or
Examiner, is also done on the
basis of the preference indicated
by the selected candidates at the time of submission of application for CGLE to
the Staff Selection Commission.” is not correct . Information available
indicates that for 1996(1999), 2003, 2004 & 2005 batches the process of
allocation was not as per the above mentioned scheme. Promotion prospects for
Inspectors (to the grade of Superintendent) / extant or projected relative
levels of stagnation have obviously
never been a criteria adopted for allocation of Zones to a newly recruited
Inspector.

3.The very first paragraph of the aforesaid
Board Brief (page 2) states that “it is necessary to ensure that the
legitimate aspirations of the officers and staff for promotions and upward
movement in the hierarchy of the department are adequately addressed, as far as
possible, in the present cadre restructuring exercise or even after that.” This
Association welcomes this assertion of the DGHRD, and reiterates its
submissions made countless times earlier that the Cadre Restructuring is an
instrument to address such vexatious issues, and enhance career prospects of all cadres, and it has to be
essentially implemented in a manner to resolve
issues such as these. The CBEC’s visualization that “zonal/cadre
disparities in promotional avenues will gradually disappear with passage of
time” is not acceptable to this Association, as
such an attitude would be abdication of
responsibility to positively intervene in a situation of grave and
long-standing injustice even when an unprecedented opportunity is afforded for
addressing conclusively these matters. It may also kindly be noted that this
Association and the cadre it represents have been repeatedly assured by the Board over the past many years that
come CR and the regional disparities plaguing it will be done away with.

Yours faithfully,

(Ajit Kumar K G)

Secretary General

We have emphatically impressed upon the Committee that our demand is that All India Seniority must be introduced beginning the first batch of Inspectors recruited on an All India Merit List inducted in the Department in 2003, and that all Inspectors senior to them in all Zones must be promoted prior to that. We have also informed that if this is not accepted, there will most certainly be serious litigation immediately.

A point was sponsored in the Meeting by the AIACEGEO, the Assn representing Supdts of Central Excise that what was needed was to bring parity among all the 3 executive base cadres in the Deptt., and our Association extended full support to the same, and pointed out that vide letter dated 28.12.2012 and on various other occasions we have voiced this demand unequivocally, and that the AICEIA views the removal of regional disparites among Inspectors from various Central Excise Zones as an important step in this direction.

An extremely unfortunate development was when during today's meeting the Secretary General of the AIACEGEO vehemently opposed our demand for introduction of All India Seniority and upgradation of all Inspectors with 12 or more years of service stating that it would greatly inconvenience them (Superintendents) with fewer Inspectors to assist them in many Zones, and that if Inspectors have to move to other Zones on promotion as Superintendents, the apprehension of All India Transfer liability could arise in Supdts' cadre. We did counter this argument saying that the Supdts cadre is functioning presently without any difficulty without AI transfers, and the only relaxation required in the new dispensation suggested by us was that transfers on requests may be allowed to Supdts wishing to be repatriated to their home zones if they have had to move out to other Zones on promotion on account of vacancies in the higher grade not being available in their home zones at the time of their promotion.

Equally disturbing was the Superintendents' Assn SG's repeated insistence during today's meeting for amendment of RRs of Supdts to reduce the residency period for promotion of Inspectors of Central Excise to Superintendents from eight years to two years, even as the AICEIA forcefully advanced its position that any reduction of minimum qualifying service should be considered only after regional disparities in promotions are completely done away with in the Inspectors' cadre.

The Office Secretary of the Central Excise Superintendents' Association who also attended the meeting today with his SG, in a vicious attack on our Association, said that Resolutions of AICEIA need not be considered seriously as opinions of the C. Ex Inspectors' cadre since CEC meetings or Conventions are attended by hardly a hundred Inspectors whereas the cadre itself is about 17000 strong. AICEIA office bearers raised objections to this immediately, and made it clear that we cannot accept casting of such aspersions on our organisation. The DG HRD and the CC Delhi Customs agreed with our contentions and advised the Supdts' Assn office bearers to confine their submissions to functioning of their own Association.

The Committee shall now compile the different Associations' views and in light of the same submit its report to the CBEC, which, in turn, will take a final call in the matter.

It was also informed that notifications in respect of jurisdiction of new formations and staff allocations as part of CR shall be issued by the end of this week.

4
comments:

It is unfortunate that the erstwhile leaders of our Association, now in other associations are working against our interest. Its a sorry state of affairs that even before the official side such a division is in display. The Superintendents Association has only displayed their high handedness, as they do it in the affairs of Inspectors in Zonal issues, now at Board level. This leadership has taken a consistent stand on All India Seniority issue, which is in the best interest and we recognise the effort as well. However it is a request that though burdened with the issue of CR, we must not loose sight of 7th CPC and it is understood that we have not given a memorandum to the Pay Commission so far.

The views published by the Secretary General are bitter truth and Comrades Ajit KG and A. Satish are performing the assigned duties in excellent manner for justice with our cadre.

Please go through latest publication available at "aiceiajaipur.blogspost.com" under heading "Bitter truth of meeting with the Board Committee".

I salute both the bearers of the Federation for their tireless efforts & contribution for requisite justice with the Cadre. I also suggest for an immediate meeting with the Chairperson and Revenue Secretary for possible justice at this juncture.

From the Blog feed of Monday, May 19, 2014 “Meeting on All India Seniority for Inspectors” it appears that the SG of the AIACEGEO wants the Superintendents to be like eagles soaring high in the sky but keeping their eyes firmly fixed on the dead animals below. The only problem with such eagles is that they think of any animal seemingly motionless to be dead and are therefore unfortunately not at all apprehensive of the fact that any surging attempt to get hold of such animals could be met with, God forbid, the most vicious of the attacks. Such views from the leadership are not at all poised especially when these are putforth before a Committee which is destined to attain a goal of larger interest to bring parity among all the 3 executive base cadres in the Department. Surprisingly such demand of parity, despite having been interposed by AIACEGEO (and seconded by the AICEIA) is now being backtracked, and the reasons being stated by their SG are presumably not the ones that are being broughtforth. It appears to be so because any parity on the issue could not be possibly brought without contemplating an ‘All India Seniority’ collectively in all the base executive cadres and with the squalid atmosphere of intrigue and betrayal faced by several of the Inspectors in some Zones across the Country, an All India Seniority would definitely pave a way towards bringing parity. The AIACEGEO could not be thought of having been unaware of such facts even at the time when they sponsored such a demand and therefore it goes without saying that their SG’s view on the 19th May 2014 Meeting is apparently camouflaged. The reasons cited by the SG about resulting situations having lesser Inspectors for the Superintendent’s assistance is purely contemptible and undignified in as much as that at least in the lesser fortunate Zones, as on date, the Superintendents do not supervise the Inspectors but thankfully coordinate with the Inspectors. The SG’s further view that in the aftermath of an All India Seniority, the all India transfer liability could arise in the Superintendent’s cadre is simply blinded by presumptuous self-conceit, as if rejoicing on other’s misfortunes. To further rub salt to our wounds, AIACEGEO also insisted upon amending the Recruitment Rules of the Superintendents for reducing the residency period for promotion of Inspectors of Central Excise to Superintendents from eight years to two years, even without giving a lateral insight in to the plight of the Inspectors of some Zones who have completed 22 years of service without a promotion, for no fault of theirs.AICEIA leadership has strongly protested to such views of the SG of AIACEGEO, who even went along to cast aspersions on our organisation that we are representative of only about 100 Inspectors or so who actually attend the CEC Meetings or conventions, out of the 17000 in the country( …the dead animal story). It appears as if the SG had directly descended to their Cadre from out of the blue because he had the audacity to cast that aspersion. Therefore my friends in the fraternity, the call of our leadership may be considered as a clarion call for any action required to set the things right, with nothing less than an All India Seniority and any amendment in the Recruitment Rules, if there be any, only following thereto, especially in view of some eagles soaring high the sky. Lastly, I don’t need to remind that animals are stronger than the birds, unless it is a rabbit or a mouse….

In case, all India seniority to Inspectors is to be implemented, then, it should be ensured that all Inspectors recruited/promoted prior to the joining of 2002/2003 batch direct (recruited on all India basis) recruit Inspectors should be promoted as Superintendents. Thereafter, then every year the seniority betweeen the direct recruit and promotee Inspectors have to be taken up for further promotion. While merging the promotee Inspectors belonging to various Zones, problems may crop up due to disparity. In one Zone a senior might not have got promotion wherein in another zone a junior might have got promotion. These issues have to be addressed carefully taking into consideration their seniority. In respect of direct recruit Inspectors this problems may not arise because of their all India recruitment and their seniority may be fixed on the basis of their SSC merit list which is all India basis. V. Gunasekaran.